Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1887-06-30
ENDED GLORIOUSLY.
The Fourth With Miss Polyphe-
mia and Faithful Barty.


phemia's shop door had been dancing
and tinkling like mad. Boys gave
such Jerks! And it seemed to Miss Poly
phemia that more boys had entered the
shop that day than in the whole fifteen
years that it had been shop. She did
not approve of boys, and had taken
pains not to keep any thing on her
shelves that could attract them When
she began business she had several jars
full of licorice and colt's-foot sticks.
and very bitter hoarhOund drops which
she expected to sell to old ladies who
bought their sewing silk of her. But
the boys discovered that a better bar
gain was to be had at Miss Polyphemia's
than at the confectioner's around the
corner, and they began to buy these
dainties of her. The result was that
Miss Polyphemia put the|jars away in
a closet when they were empty, and
never had them refilled. She had
rigidly avoided marbles and toys and
slate-pencils, and no boys except those
sent on errands, who were necessary
evils, had ever darkened her doors
until to-day.
But to-day! If there was boy in
Plumleyville between the ages of six
teen and two who hadn't been in that
shop to-day, Miss Polyphemia ''would
like to see him. And she felt as if all
nerves were dancing like the bell, and
her bag dog, Lord George. upon
whom she relied as a protector, had
become so disturbed in mind that he
growled even in the middle of his nap.
Miss Polyphemia almost lamented
the thrifty New England blood in her
veins which had led her to accept old
Jerry Dobson's offer to pay in fire.
works the bill which had been due for
six years, and which she had regarded
as a total loss. Old Jerry had no
money to pay with, but his son-in-law
had come into possession OF bankrupt
stock of fireworks. AS it event agin
his grain to cheat women folks any
how" he had brought Miss Polyphe-
mia a great quantity of fireworks, and
offered to rig EN- up kind of amazin'"
in her shop-window, and ''bein' twas
the Fourth, she couldn't help maxim a
poorly spec on 'em."
"a pretty speculation'' was thing
dear to Miss Polyphemia's heart, and
she scarcely thought of the boys. She
had had so little experience with them
since she abandoned hoarhound drops
and came into possession of Lord
George-who had a deep-rooted hatred
and keen scent for boys-that she
had almost forgotten how they set her
teeth on edge.
1t was in the shades of evening that
Jerry Dobson had ''rigged up'' the
window, and it certainly was ''amazin'"
with not only fireworks of almost every
kind, but trumpets and whistles, and
cannons and guns, red and purple
balloons, and American flags.
That winder was hull Fourth of
July by ITSELF" old Jerry proudly re-
marked. ut could all but whistle
Yankee Doodle"
But when Miss Polyphemia, peepine
cautiously out of the window in her
night-cap at six o'clock in the morn
ing, saw row of boys three deep on
the sidewalk gazing in open-mouthed
admiration at the window, she sympa-
thized with Lord George. who refused
his breakfast, and sat at the shop door
and howled.
Boys came by ones and by twos and
by dozens-boys large and small, boys
ragged and dirty, boys clean and
whole, boys with money and boys
without But in all the variety there
was not one who did not jerk the door,
and there were some who came half a
dozen times to inquire the prices which
were marked upon the articles so
plainly that t>ey could easily be seen
from the street. But the money
drawer was filling up, and Miss Poly
phemia's trading bump struggled hard
against her nerves. This day was al
most gone, and there would be but
one more before the Fourth of July.
She might be able to live and preserve
her senses through that, she thought,